Samsung Will Discontinue its Messages App; Microsoft-Copilot Just for Entertainment Purposes; Used EV Prices Spike; LinkedIn Scans Chrome 6,000 Browser Extensions-Your Protection or Gathering Data?

Posted: April 6, 2026 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , | Leave a comment

If you have been using Messages on your Samsung device, get set to change apps. 9to5google.com reports that Samsung has put out an ‘End of Service Announcement’ for the US starting in July 2026. It will not affect really old devices, but if you have a halfway recent Samsung phone or the like…using Android 12 or newer…Samsung will guide you to Google Messages. This will happen with both an in-app notification and on-screen instructions. On Android 14+, the Google Messages icon will automatically shift to your home screen dock after switching. I couldn’t find where it imports your old messages, so you may be on your own on that.

We have done a number of stories that have covered how AI pretty frequently ‘hallucinates,’ or lies. Recently, the California Bar sent out a warning to attorneys telling them to check case citations and statute cites in filings with courts…or face fines and discipline should they submit filings with fake cases, etc. Now, it turns out Microsoft has re-affirmed that Copilot is for ‘entertainment purposes only,’ and if used for work, it should only be used as the first of multiple stages of fact-checking…rather than being relied upon. According to techradar.com, Microsoft says about Copilot “It can make mistakes, and it may not work as intended. Don’t rely on Copilot for important advice. Use Copilot at your own risk.” They are really trying to avoid liability here, and want users to know the AI is a tool, not a decision maker. Here’s the key line: “You agree to indemnify us and hold us harmless… from and against any claims, losses, and expenses… arising from or relating to your use of Copilot.” A hold harmless agreement…please do use it as a tool…it’s not ‘intelligent’ as the description Artificial Intelligence would imply!

This may seem to be a no kidding story, but Used EV prices are spiking along with gasoline prices. Wired.com notes that Cox Automotive data shows used EV prices up 12% since the 1st of the year. Edmunds also sees shopper research into EVs up several percentage points since the 1st of the year. So..just as Trump’s war has pushed gas prices up, and as the federal government discontinued the $7500 credit, so new EV sales fell and car makers throttled back production, the demand has gone up significantly for used EVs. EVs had been notably more expensive than gas models, but according to Cox Automotive, the average used EV is now just $1300 more than the average gas model. I know someone with a 120 mile a day commute. Even with a new $400 a month car payment on a used EV and the cost for charging it, he is saving $100 a month on gas. in 90 days, he will have erased that price premium. When the car is paid off, he will save even more. Food for thought in this time of extra pain at the pump. 

They claim it is for you protection, but every time you use LinkedIn on a Chrome browser, LinkedIn runs a hidden routine that probes your browser for more than 6,000 installed extensions, collects 48 hardware and software characteristics about your device, encrypts the resulting fingerprint, and attaches it to every API request you make during your session. Thenextweb.com reports that the scan is not disclosed in LinkedIn’s privacy policy. They insist that it is for your security. Ir also collects 48 different characteristics about your device. It collects info about competitors with its own sales tools, and also lists tools associated with neurodivergent conditions, religious practice, political interests, and job-hunting activity. The EU is investigating, as these qualify as sensitive personal data under their General Data Protection Regulation. Want to limit this? Use LinkedIn with Firefox, Safari, or another browser besides Chrome or Microsoft’s own browser. You will have to hunt for a setting to curb the scan, though. 

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.

Vivo’s Dual Display NEX Phone; OnePlus 6T McLaren Edition; Amazon Gives Alexa Location Based Reminders & Routines; Daimler Buying $23 Billion Worth of Batteries for EVs

Posted: December 11, 2018 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Vivo has come out with what they call an all-screen NEX smartphone. According to engadget.com, there’s NO selfie cam…but you won’t need one, they say. You can flip the phone around and just shoot your selfie with the pop up back cam…the back of the phone has a rear screen so you can set up your shot! The phone is called the NEX Dual Display Edition. The phone is out in China for $725 December 29th.

OnePlus has showed off a fancy new McLaren Edition 6T. The phone comes with 10 Gigs of RAM and 256 Gigs of storage, according to businessinsider.com. Part of the back is carbon fiber, and it has a beautiful but tough carbon fiber case….and of course, a racing stripe and the McLaren logo. Even with the vanity edition tweaked by the performance car maker, the phone is just $700…$300 less than an iPhone Xs…which doesn’t have that kind of memory or storage, and comes with no case at all to protect that glass back!

A major update has hit Alexa devices. Amazon has opened up new features, including location based routines and reminders, timer enhancements, app notifications, email support, and more. 9to5mac.com says the update was announced in September, but has just rolled out. An example given would be ‘Alexa, remind me to feed the dogs when I get home.’ When the Alexa device detects your phone inside the house, it will remind you. You can also program multiple routines with wait times…like turning on lights when you get up, but pausing for 20 minutes or so before switching on music or news.

Mercedes parent Daimler is going all-in on electric vehicles. The German giant is going to buy $23 billion worth of battery cells by 2030 to go into Mercedes-Benz EVs and commercial trucks. The company presently has supplier deals with LG, SK Innovation, and China’s CATL. Daimler plans to launch 130 electric and hybrid vehicles by 2022, and a number of commercial trucks, busses, and vans, too. Battery production for the cars with all those lithium-ion cells will be in 8 factories on 3 continents.

Driverless Waymo’s Hitting Cali Roads; Ford & VW May Share e-Platform; Apple Pulls watchOS Update; Solar Cell-Electricity & Hydrogen Simultaneously

Posted: October 31, 2018 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The application went in last spring, but yesterday, Google’s Waymo got permission from California to start testing driverless cars on public roads. 9too5google.com notes that Waymo was already operating in 25 US cities, but always with a safety driver on board. Waymo will start initial testing in Mountain View, Sunnyvale, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, and Palo Alto…all near the Google and Alphabet campuses. The DMV permit allows for day/night testing on city streets, rural roads, and highways with posted speed limits of 65 mph…so pretty well anywhere in the above communities and their surroundings. Perhaps Waymo should strap in a realistic dummy to make other motorists feel more comfortable!

With the move to electric vehicles, a number of auto makers are partnering with others. Toyota has hooked up with Subaru and BMW, for example, and now Ford and Volkswagen may be teaming up. Cnet.com reports that Ford and VW may share a platform for EVs. VW had previously said it might open up its MEB platform to others. Ford and VW had announced a ‘memorandum of understanding’ about possible collaboration last summer. Ford had previously announced that it would be bringing 40 EV models to market, and that it was investing some 11 billion in electrics by 2022. As long as we don’t have a Musta-Beetle or the like, all will probably be well with the EV world!

After their big show yesterday on iPads and Macs, Apple dropped iOS 12.1 and watchOS 5.1. Now, according to zdnet.com, they have pulled the Watch update. It was apparently bricking the newest, greatest Watch Series 4 models. The Watches just stopped booting at the apple logo, and couldn’t be force quit or rebooted, even if unpaired from an iPhone. Many users attempted to take the devices into Apple Stores, but most were out of Series 4 models, and they are being shipped from overseas by 3 day air. Apple says it is a very small number that were affected.

Researchers at Berkeley Lab have developed a process that can turn sunlight and water into electricity AND hydrogen! Engadget.com says its an ‘artificial photosynthesis’ process, but a big step up from previous attempts…going from 6.8% to 20.2% efficient. The team is moving into experimenting with real-world applications of the tech, but both electricity and hydrogen (for fuel cells) from one source could be a giant step towards more clean energy.

Ford-Bye Gas, Hello Batteries; Samsung Giant Indian Factory; Owning Apple i Devices = Wealth

Posted: July 9, 2018 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Previously, Ford had announced that, outside of the Mustang, they were ditching cars for all SUVs and trucks. Now, engadget.com reports that Ford is going all-in on electrics. They plan to have a 300 mile range Mustang inspired small SUV (code name Mach 1) on the road by 2020. They plan to have 40 electrified vehicles…16 of then EVs…..by 2022.

Samsung has opened the world’s largest mobile phone factory in India. According to Bloomberg, it will make everything from $100 cheapies to the flagship S9. Locally, most sales in India are in the $250 or less range. Last year, India passed up the US to become the 2nd largest market for smartphones after China. Cisco did a study, and sees India going from 359 million smartphones in 2018 to 780 million in 2021.

In a study by the University of Chicago, in the US ’no individual brand is as predictive of being high-income as owning an Apple iPhone’. Businessinsider.com says the study was based on 2016 data. According to the researchers, owning an iPhone gave them a 69% chance to correctly infer that the phone owner was ‘high-income,’ which they defined as in the top 25% of income for the household type (like single adult….or couple with dependents.) For reference, back in 1992, the strongest indicator of high income households was Grey Poupon mustard!